Aria has grown up in the enclosed city of Reverie. She’s been taught that this is the only way to safely live, in a protected dome that separates her society from the outer wasteland known as the Death Shop. Out there, there are a million ways to die, whether from being eaten by cannibals, getting lethally sick from some kind of airborne disease, or being caught in an Aether storm. So when Aria is exiled from Reverie and forced into the wasteland, she knows her chances of survival are slim to none. But then she meets an Outsider named Perry, and she realizes that if she wants to live, she’s going to need his help. Together, they form a shaky partnership as they struggle through dangerous territories, hoping against hope to find what they’re looking for, and growing to realize that what they need most might be each other.

Under the Never Sky is an entertaining read, but not one that particularly stands out among the rest of the dystopian titles in YA. I didn’t find Rossi’s setting particularly original or unique, with small pockets of protected areas where the remains of advanced society reside and some sort of destroyed wasteland to embody the rest of society, usually where the rebels or other groups of people believed to be barbaric live. These are ideas I’ve seen in countless other books, including Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Delirium by Lauren Oliver, and Dark Parties by Sara Grant. I’m not usually too opposed to borrowing ideas if it fits with the story, but I didn’t like that these ideas were not particularly embellished upon in Under the Never Sky or even explained. Rossi’s futuristic society really only makes sense because of other futuristic novels I’ve read, because Rossi herself never gives much background for why the Aether is so dangerous and where it even came from. The plot is somewhat engaging, especially as the romance between Aria and Perry develops, but it doesn’t go much deeper than that until the very end of the story. Despite my issues with its worldbuilding, Under the Never Sky remains a quick and enjoyable dystopian read.

Readers who love dystopian worlds such as those in the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, Dark Parties by Sara Grant, Birthmarked by Caragh M. O’Brien, and Delirium by Lauren Oliver will enjoy Under the Never Sky.

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2013

October:67. The Color of Rain (Cori McCarthy)

September:66. The Fifth Wave (Rick Yancey)65. United We Spy (Ally Carter)64. Out of Sight, Out of Time (Ally Carter)63. Only the Good Spy Young (Ally Carter)62. Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover (Ally Carter)61. Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy (Ally Carter60. I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You (Ally Carter)59. Also Known As (Robin Benway)58. Not a Drop to Drink (Mindy McGinnis)57. The Waking Dark (Robin Wasserman)

THE BOOK MUNCHER is the reviewing alias of a prolific reader. She is guilty of several overflowing bookshelves in several states. Her literary diet is mostly dedicated to the young adult fiction genre but has been known to occasionally stray into middle grade or adult categories. She is a firm believer that reading and literacy are as essential to modern life as physical sustenance, that fiction is often truer than nonfiction, and that stories and words have the power to change the world.